Memories Are Like Roses
by JumpingLurker
Summary: Dreams of a life long since past hold the key for righting the balance of power within the world of the Vampir are held in Emilia's hands. She must tread carefully if she is to protect the ones she loves from the disaster that looms on the horizon.
1. Prologue

So I doubt anyone out there remembers this story I put it up well over a year ago but I just recently rewrote the chapters changed quite a bit. I plan on continuing this story now that I have a better grasp on how I want it to go and some advice on how to proceed. Enjoy and Please leave me comments!

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---_**It was once again laid out all too clearly though still protected by that delicate haze, causing the darkened vision to flit in and out of perspective. As before it once again began the same; Strong, gusting winds stirring up with the promise of a storm rushing in to the solitary figure of a woman facing out from the jutting cliffs overhanging the sea.**_

_**The air of the warm summer night brushed over her skin with the coming of the strong winds reminiscent of a lover's passionate caress. Her full and lush lips parted in a sigh as her eyelashes drifted closed forming thick black crescents against her creme skin colored askew by the ever drifting mist left untouched by the winds.**_

_**She turned, facing now the out stretched plains of her homeland, her back to the cliffs. The waves crashed violently against the cliff face as if in protest to her simple action of turning away. The sea spray washed over her dousing the ring of lit candles about her feet but not extinguishing their soft light. Her dark auburn hair blew around her bare shoulders and she took in a deep breath, calling the many scents of the night to her. Her lips turned up into a secret smile as her eyes opened, baring their fierce violet color to the world.**_

_**Her eyes pierced through the shadowy mist and of their own accord and commanded the shadowy mist from her being. She lifted her arms above her head, looking like a pagan goddess with her silky white gown pillowing around her lush curves and her dark hair tossed about her shoulders. The wind lifted the skirt about her long legs as she lifted her voice in a cry to the heavens - and the storm answered, unleashing its dark stores upon the earth, drenching everything.**_

_**Her chest lifted in excitement as her heart raced and her eyes dazzled. She began to twirl around in a hypnotic dance as the rain immersed her, making her dress cling to her body, the thin material showing her creamy skin beneath.**_

_**Lightening danced through the sky racing from cloud to cloud. Her dance became more frantic without losing its grace. Her heart beat out fiercely; setting the beat for the rain and wind. Thunder boomed loudly across the rolling plains, shaking the foundations of the small homes scattered far and wide across the distant stretching plains. As the scene unfolded tension rang high through the air, waiting and waiting as she danced on unaware her voice harmonizing with the thunder as it cried out.**_

_**The sound of her voice gradually faded away from existence and was replaced by the howling cry of something dark and lost, writhing it's way up from it's resting place deep within the earth to the surface in a last attempt to retrieve it's only chance at becoming whole. The ground's patina peeled away exposing the rocky soil beneath. Demons swam along the top, crying out horribly forcing the very plant life to shrink away and die. The sky grew even darker and the wind grew more turbulent. Surely they would spread their dark taint across all the ends of the earth and turn all who fall into their path to ruin.**_

_**Onward the darkness raced towards its prize, decaying her very beloved homeland in its wake, to the woman as she froze in her dance, her arms outreached towards the darkness. With a final horrifying cry of outrage the darkness was upon her, swallowing her whole but her eyes unflinching met it head on and her mouth opened and her voice rang out clear before she was consumed completely snuffing the candles of their light and plunging everything into a deep impenetrable darkness.**_ ---


	2. Down the Path

She awoke with a choked gasp her hands quickly flying up to her neck as if to pry away some unseen fingers crushing the breath from her body. Her bright brown eyes darted around the room to every ambiguous shadow looming in the corner and her heart beat loud in her ears. The soft murmur and rustling of sheets from the other side of the room caught her attention and her eyes snapped to it. Almost immediately she breathed a sigh of relief, her heartbeat slowed, no longer a deafening rush in her ears. After-images of the dream still drifted through her mind and she shook her head to clear them away.

Her eyes roamed over the two distinct forms nestled in the bed just opposite hers seemingly undisturbed by her sudden awakening. A soft smile turned the corners of her mouth up as she lifted a hand to run through her hair. She watched the two sleeping forms for a few more moments before she slid out of her bed and quietly to the floor. Her forehead and back were covered in a layer of perspiration causing her thick cotton nightgown and hair to cling uncomfortably to her skin.

Her feet padded softly across the hardwood floor to come to a stop before the only window in the room. Her fingers slid under the sill and with a firm push she lifted it open. The window groaned quietly in protest and she winced as the silence throughout the house only magnified the sound. Once it was fully open she closed her eyes for a moment and allowed the cool breeze to wash over her warm skin. She stuck her head out of the window and rested her palms against the sill and made to hoist herself out when a soft voice rang out stopping her.

"Emi? What are you doing, Emi? It's still dark out." She bit down on her full bottom lip for a moment and stepped back pulling herself back into the room as she turned to face the owner of the voice already knowing to whom it belonged. Behind her sitting up in bed was her youngest sister watching her with large curious eyes the deepest shade of blue.

"Nothing Kaylee, go back to sleep." She responded as she walked back across to the room and at the young girl's side to tuck her back into bed. Kaylee lay back down without any fight but she watched her eldest sister's face intently.

"Emi it's still dark out. Are you leaving again?" Emi chewed on her bottom lip but didn't say anything. She brushed her fingers through Kaylee s golden hair that fell in loose ringlets to her shoulders before smiling warmly at her.

"Only for a little bit. I'll be back before mother and father wake. So please go back to sleep Kaylee." Emi leaned forward and planted a kiss against Kaylee's forehead before straightening up and returning to the window. She could feel Kaylee's gaze on her back as she went but she did not pause to look back over her shoulder at her. She knew she would fall back asleep in a few minutes after she'd gone. She easily pulled her self through the window and her feet found the familiar footholds along the side of her house on their own and she began her descent downwards. It took her less than half a minute for her feet to reach the dew laden grass from much practice. She smoothed her nightgown down and with a quick glance around turned and briskly walked towards the tree line not far from her home. Emi picked her way through the trees, careful of where she stepped to save her bare feet the trouble of pricking themselves on something sharp, ignoring the wide path not too far from her right.

The path soon disappeared from view as she pushed onwards her eyes sweeping the area before her in search of something. It didn't take too long for her to find what she sought. She quickly turned onto a much smaller path her pace picking up as soon as her feet hit it. This was not the first time Emi traveled down this path alone in the dark; she traversed it often to reach her special spot. She never feared being attacked by any stray animal sure that she could defend herself and thus never wasted any time feeling nervous walking in the woods at night; but as she walked on an unsettling feeling settled in the pit of her stomach and made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. She frowned and glanced around nervously. She was much too close to her goal to want to turn back now but as she continued on the feeling grew until she found herself forcing each foot in front of the other concentrating on each movement to prevent herself from running full speed back to the house.

_'This is ridiculous! There is absolutely no reason for me to behave like this!'_ She yelled inwardly at herself. She lifted her eyes from her feet as she half stumbled into a small clearing. She stood up straight and lifted her head banishing her worried feelings to wherever they had crawled out from. She had finally reached her destination - a small spring circled by a few feet of grass on all sides deep within the forest. So what if she easily could be stalked from the safety of the trees and never know she was a target for some attack...No! None of that, it had been awhile since she had last come here and she wasn't going to waste all her time thinking of exciting ways she could be left for dead before she had an inkling of what was happening.  
She strode over to the small pool's edge and tested the water with the tip of her toe. The temperature was cool but not freezing, just as she preferred it on nights like these. She pulled her nightgown over her head and neatly folded it and placed it with care off to the side before she slid into the spring.

The water lapped against her skin as she waded out into the very center of the small pool, the water ending just below her collarbone. Tiny goose bumps formed along her skin making her shiver slightly. She tilted her head back and let her chocolate hair disappear beneath the surface of the water. Emi leaned back and brought her head back up enough to let herself float freely along the top of the water. Her eyes never left the sky which was already brightened by the coming dawn. As she floated along the top of the water, hair fanning out around her like a halo, her mind drifted back to her vivid dream. It was not the first time she had had that dream, in fact she seemed to have it quite often - more so as of late. With the increasing frequency that the dream occurred she couldn't help but wonder if it was supposed to mean something, and if it did what?

Emi's eyes grew wide with surprise and her body grew tense as a shiver went down her spine. She quickly righted herself in the pool and looked around warily. She could have sworn she heard a low mumbled chuckle from somewhere within the trees, and not far from where she currently stood. She scrambled out of the water and clutched her nightgown to her still looking around. She bit down on her lip as if to decide if chancing pulling her nightgown over her heard was worth losing sight for a few seconds as she did so. A faint blush stole over her cheeks and modesty won out as she donned her cotton gown. Once every limb was in place and the nightgown hung as it should her eyes darted back up and immediately connected with another set of eyes across the clearing.

Any noise was lost in the back of her throat as she stumbled backwards out of surprise. A mistake on her part as she felt herself lose her footing she snapped her head around to watch as she tumbled right towards the water. She shut her eyes and prepared for the impact with the water but it never came. She lifted her eyes and realized a pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist holding her over the water. The owner of the arms chuckled low under their breath.

"Ah Emilia, Emilia. I did not expect to see _you_ here so soon."


	3. The Encounter

Emi stood with her toes barely touching the ground, her eyes glued to the stranger, his arms still securely around her waist. Fear held her in a vice grip while her thoughts spiraled out of control along with her heart rate. She knew he had been across the clearing by the edge of the trees only seconds before. There was no way he could have caught her in time to prevent her spill into the spring. And he some how knew her name - though she was certain she did not know him. And his 'eyes'. No one had eyes like that. They were blood red, and the pupils were large with the hint of an oval shape to them. They way his eyes watched her was unnerving, like she was something to snack on. As frightening as his eyes were Emi couldn't pull her gaze from them. They all but demanded her attention and she had no problem obliging. As the seconds passed she became aware of a burning in her chest and she realized she had been holding her breath.

"Breathe, _A Stóirín_, breathe." Amusement shone briefly in his eyes as she felt his laugh rumble deeply through his chest as she sucked air into her lungs. Her thoughts finally began to settle as she continually reminded herself to drag air in and out. Obviously she was in a bit of a predicament. She should try to put some space between the two of them. Even as she told herself this she couldn't bring herself to move her feet or arms at all, her body was content to stay where it was nestled in the arms of this man whose very aura screamed danger at her.

She growled to herself mentally and with much gathered disciplined forced her eyes away from his stare which granted her the will to move her limbs on command once again. She pressed her palms against his chest and pushed with as much force as she could muster trying to wiggle away from him. He acted as though he didn't notice her attempt. Emi gritted her teeth and braced herself to meet his striking gaze once more. She lifted her chin and stared him in the eye with the best glare she could muster up which would have been enough to make a rattlesnake shrink back. Her teeth still clenched tightly together she hissed out, "Let. Me. Go. **_Now_**."

He raised a sculpted brow and took a step away from the water's edge but rather than meet her request if you would label it as such he pulled her tighter against his chest, warranting a disgruntled cry from her lips.

"And why would I do that?" He asked slowly, his voice sliding over her like silk. She shook her head fiercely, refusing to be drawn into his glamour. She beat her fists against his chest and struggled all the more but to her dismay it didn't seem to matter a thing to him. He did not budge an inch or flinch under her assault. He studied her carefully and tilted his head to the side slightly, bits of his raven hair falling into his face. She had a strong urge to reach up and brush the strands back into place and she almost felt her hand lift as if to do so infuriating her even more. She always detested feeling vulnerable and out of control of her own actions, something that this man seemed to do to her with no effort at all.

With a mumbled humph he released her and she quickly stumbled back a few feet feeling almost sad that he had let her go. She mentally slapped herself and wondered vaguely why her body would betray her now of all times. She steadied herself and crossed her arms over her chest and glared unwaveringly at him. Emi was angry at the level of intimacy this stranger felt the two of them were at but she also knew she was still afraid, though she tried her best to squash the latter into a corner. She knew she had to be wary at the very least. He was after all very fast and from what she could tell strong. His skin had felt smooth as silk under her hands but she had felt the steel muscle beneath it as well. She glanced him over head to toe in a quick evaluation. He stood seemingly relaxed but a part of her mind told her that he was ready to spring at any given moment if needed. His overall body tone was on the lighter side but he was not bean-pole skinny. He stood no taller than six feet, maybe an inch or two taller. She noticed that he was pale, paler than she was but not in a sickly manner. It only drew attention to his dark hair, which framed the hard planes of his face and fell in layers slightly past his chin, and bright eyes and it certainly did not take away from his appeal.

Emi bit down on her bottom lip as she continued to take him in, not being able to deny to herself that he was simply attractive. Even as she formed an argument in her mind over his beauty his sudden speech ripped her from her thoughts. "Do you like what you see, _A Rún_?" Her eyes automatically snapped up to his face from where it had been lingering on his chest her cheeks burning under his stare. "I have no idea what you re talking about." She responded, her voice sounding a bit strained. He shrugged his shoulders as if to say she wasn't the first to do so and he thought nothing of it. Even though he was clearly dismissing it she couldn't help but feel miffed at the thought of others' eyes wandering over him. Another mental slap. Later she would have to set herself straight now was neither the time nor place for this, of course assuming she even had a 'later'. The thought of perhaps having no immediate future sent a shiver down her back and allowed her to finally focus.

He began to walk in a slow semi-circle around her, effectively trapping her between him and the water though he did so without letting on that it was intentional. Her eyes followed him back and forth as he walked. His eyes roamed casually over her body making her at once self conscious. He moved so quietly she would not have known he was moving at all if she wasn't watching him. She sucked a deep breath of air into her lungs before breaking the silence. "How do you know my name?" He paused in his pacing and his eyes flitted up to hers. Emi could have sworn that he looked confused by her question but the emotion had come and gone so quickly she had no way of knowing for sure.

He started his pacing again but slower than before. "Are you saying that you do not remember me from our previous encounter?" Her expression gave him all the answer he needed and he sighed and looked up to the sky. She watched him all the more warily; it was possible he wasn't all there in the head. "Well that is a shame, I must say. You seemed to enjoy yourself so much last time..." She listened to his every word carefully. She stiffened as she felt his warm breath suddenly upon the back of her neck. She had not even seen him move. "...You did not even protest to my _kiss_." His lips brushed against the side of her neck while he heavily drew in her scent.

Emi pivoted around quickly her hand raised to deliver as hard a slap as she could to his face but he was already gone, standing where he had been before his sudden intrusion upon her personal space. He clicked his tongue in a sound of disapproval and shook his head from side to side like she was a young child in need of scolding. Her cheeks burned a dark red and she drew her arms protectively around herself and she took another step back more afraid than before. He frowned and took a step forward and she flinched back from him. "Ah now now _mo Chroí_, do not act terrified of me." He paused looking down, thinking over what he just said. "Well, I suppose it is wise of you to fear me...But I tell you this I have no intention of harming you this night." His words did little to comfort her. He chuckled softly and strode boldly up to her, closing the gap between the two of them in a quick three strides ignoring her tries to back away from him.

He stretched out his arm and wrapped it around her, crushing her body to his ignoring her distressed cry. "Ah Emilia, I'm afraid our time together is growing short." His eyes quickly darted to the sky where the gray of dawn was making itself seen along the horizon. He lifted a hand and slid his finger down the side of cheek causing her to freeze up in his arms. He continued on with a sigh, oblivious to her reaction to him. "I know I know, too soon too soon. I will be sure to treat you better next time." He grinned at her then, his smile knocking the breath out of her as she stared dumbfounded up at him. Before she could regain her composure he caught her chin in his hand and angling her face upwards, his mouth swiftly descending upon hers. His mouth moved hotly over hers leaving her swept off her feet and more than dazed. The kiss lasted for what seemed like ages but was over too quickly. He finally pulled away wearing a smug grin. "Until next we meet. Try not to forget to breathe." With that he released her and took a step backwards before disappearing into the trees. His faint laughter echoed throughout the surrounding forest until blending into the calls of the waking birds. Emilia fell to her knees still in shock from the gravity of the kiss. She gingerly touched her fingers to her lips; when she pulled them away she did not notice the blood that tipped them. She sat there in the quiet clearing as the sun peaked over the trees bathing her in its soft glow leaving her lost to her thoughts.


	4. Liffey

He stood still as stone his eyes never leaving her form. The taste of her blood was still fresh in his mouth. She would most assuredly assume he had long since left her but he remained behind, hidden within the dark recesses of the forest. The sun was climbing higher over the horizon painting the sky with soft lavenders and brilliant oranges further pushing the remnants of night away. The fast growing light stung at his eyes leaving him to take one step backwards deeper into the shade of the trees. The shade granted his skin immunity from the morning light but it granted him little relief. Just being out during the day was enough to make his skin crawl, leaving behind the impression of thousands of needles poised above his skin ready to strike. He watched as she finally climbed up off her knees and to her feet and stumbled towards the trees where the path she had taken to get to the clearing began. He silently snickered as he watched her slap her cheeks and shake her head repeatedly mumbling under her breath about infuriating gorgeous men and week knees.

He pondered following her through the woods at least until her home came into view. It would be a risky move. The shade of the trees would only protect him for so long and he had to get back with his report from last night before Liffey, his superior, got too cranky. Liffey had a tendency to break things when upset or cranky. He paced swiftly yet quietly through the trees careful to always keep Emilia within his sight but always out of her view. She seemed to calm down with every step she took away from the spring and he could no longer hear her ramble on to herself. A little disappointing - he had found her rambling to be quite entertaining. The smile quickly fell from his face as he stopped in mid step. A faint hiss escaped through his teeth as he crouched down low. He was no longer the only one following the girl.

Through the low bushes on the other side of the worn path another creature slinked out of Emilia's sight. From how it drew closer with every slither he could tell it hadn't caught onto his scent as of yet. The creature's skin was a pale, charcoal gray. Its torso was elongated and its limbs were short and bent so that its stomach dragged along the ground as it moved; at the end of each stubby appendage were three curved wicked claws. It had a long curling tail the whipped around quickly, never still. Its face was flat its eyes glittered black. There was a long slash of a mouth that curved from eye tip to eye tip and was filled with many serrated teeth. Its neck meshed into its head and torso making it hard to differentiate where what stopped and what began. The movements it made looked stiff as if it had been sitting still for a very long time but it still slunk through the under bush with speed. From the look in the creature's eyes and the drool that dribbled down its chin it was plain to see what its intent was with Emilia.

The young man issued a growl low enough to escape Emilia's ears but loud enough to catch the creature's attention. It froze in its tracks and curled up defensively scanning the trees for his position. He held his breath and counted to three. Whether if by some intuition or by chance Emi picked up her pace into a neat sprint that carried her quickly away from their hidden places in the trees much to his relief. He did not need any witnesses around for this. As the tail end of her cotton nightgown disappeared from view around the corner he sprang from his spot, his movements too quick to give the creature enough time to react.

The creature screeched and spat as his weight slammed into it his deft strong hands quickly circling around its neck. In one swift motion he snapped its head to the side with an audible crack. The creatures head flopped limply to the side but its hisses did not cease. His brow furrowed and his teeth gritted as he flexed his hands like claws and made a grab for the creature's chest. He was blindsided by the creature s tail as it barreled into him and sent him flying back a few feet. He recovered quickly and crouched down low again his red eyes alive with fury. He looked very much like a large predatory cat ready to pounce. The creature's head dragged against the ground as it spun in slow circles trying to ready itself for the next attack. He launched his body once more tackling the creature. Their bodies writhed around on the ground as he wrestled it beneath his weight careful to avoid the whip like tail. Claws dug deep into his flesh spilling his thick blood onto the dirt under them. With a roar of anger He pinned the creature and thrust his fist through its center. The creature emitted a final terrible screech before going limb completely. He retracted his hand back leaving behind a gaping hole. His arm was covered in a thick slime-like blackness, clutched in his fist was the creature's misshapen heart. It beat twice in his hand before he crushed it into silence.

He opened his hand palm up, what was once the creature's heart turned to dust followed shortly after by its corpse. He let the dust slide out of his hand to mingle with the dust pile below; the wind would take care of the rest. He lifted his right arm to his face to inspect the two large claw rakes across his bicep. He cursed under his breath in agitation. The wound would heal fast enough but now he would have to mention this little run in with Liffey. As if on cue a shrill voice echoed through his head.

'Ánrothán? Where the hell are you!' He ran a hand through his now disheveled hair with a sigh as Liffey's voice hissed at him in his head. 'You know how much I hate being made to wait! It's already morning you have five minutes to get back here or so help me I will rip out your...' Ánrothán expertly tuned out Liffey's voice before turning on his heel and dashed off through the trees. He knew he would only get lectured all the worse by Liffey once he did get back to their base for shutting out the rant but he wasn't in the mood to listen. He sped quickly through the trees not even brushing against a single leaf the only sign of his passing the slight bow in the grass that remained only moments after he went by. At the speed he was going reaching the base in five minutes would be no great task though sadly that would not console Liffey any and he was still in for good ear chewing.

Ánrothán came to a stop, his eyes restlessly scanning the surrounding forest searching for the hidden opening amongst the hallows of the trees. Even though he and his comrades had been in the area for nearly two weeks now and he was more than familiar with the area it always took him longer than it should to find the correct opening. It did not help that he could not rely on his acute senses to find it due to the ward that encompassed the opening dulling everything significantly within a 20 foot radius. He found it soon enough beneath a tree's roots that outcropped over a wide ditch. The massed together roots created a kind of canopy the few feet they did stretch out. Below the canopy cloaked by the dirt and loose stones was a narrow tunnel. The tunnel's breadth was no more then five feet across and the ceiling just low enough that Ánrothán would have to duck as he ran the length of it. The corridor held a strong musty scent that tickled his nose as he ran. He paid little attention to it. He was almost at the end now. A faint flickering light was now visible at the very end shining down from the ceiling.

Reaching the end of the tunnel he came to a stop and straightened up. He tilted his head upwards to peer through a hole where the light filtered down through. In front of him stood a solid wall and there were no ladders or ropes in sight making it seem a dead end, the top of the hole was a good seven feet up and the hole itself narrower than the tunnel. He crouched down slightly before springing back up, shooting easily up through the hole. He landed with feet on either side of the opening before once more taking off. He was in a hallway now lined with lit candles who s flames danced as he blew past. The hall was larger than the tunnel had been and he did not need to stoop down to get through. At the end of the hallway was a fork in the path. Without a pause or even a slight slowing in his speed Ánrothán turn to the left and continued on. He turned left once more at a second fork and found himself before a heavy wooden door inlaid with ancient carvings. He quickly composed himself - straightening his back, a quick run of the hand through his hair and the mellowing of his facial features - before opening the door.

He was greeted by a mixture of incenses and a thick smoke that stung at his eyes. He stepped inside and took a step to the right before letting the door fall shut behind him. The room was quite large with a domed ceiling. The walls were lined with countless bookshelves stocked full of dusty books of varying kinds as well as many rolled up scrolls. The room was dark without a single window to let in any natural light or fresh air for that matter. Many candles were scattered along tables and chandeliers hung low from the ceiling casting a weak light throughout the room. Not that his kind even needed any light to see by.

He began a slow stride to the center of the room. Standing there was a short figure dressed completely in black. Their clothes were very form fitting and a long heavy cloak was draped across their shoulders. Their hair hung down half the length of their back and was a glossy, midnight black. Their form was very slim and uniform, their height just above five feet two inches. They looked very young, no older than thirteen or fourteen years of age. Their face simply put - was beautiful though completely androgynous. This was none other than Liffey. No one was completely sure as to whether or not Liffey was a man or woman - except for Liffey of course -, no one dared to ask for risk of starting another tantrum. Most went with the safe road and referred to Liffey strictly as 'Sir' and as a he in passing.

Even Ánrothán who had been with Liffey for nearly fifteen years now had no idea as to Liffey's real gender. Every so often he seemed to lean more towards one than the other. Ánrothán allowed himself an internal chuckle as he mused over once more Liffey's true workings as he came to a stop a few safe feet away from where Liffey stood. Liffey was currently preoccupied gesturing angrily to another in the room. The man stood taller than Ánrothán and looked to be older, biologically anyways. The man and Liffey spoke together very quickly and in hushed tones, the man often bowing his head with a mumbled apology. It would have been impossible for anyone without their enhanced hearing to pick up on their conversation. With a hiss Liffey waved his hand to dismiss the man before crossing his arms over his chest and turning his attention on Ánrothán. "It's about _time_ you got here. Care to explain where you've been?"


End file.
